He Picked His Favorite
by rosebud0520
Summary: Jack Frost is never one for favoritism, but this emerald-eyed girl may be his only exception as he cant help but spend more time with her. Rapunzel, for her part, is starting to realize there might be more to herself, and the handsome Guardian, than she first thought.
1. Prologue

***Hello! Thank you for stopping in to read my first Fanfiction! Please take time to write a review and tell me how I did, and thank you very much!***

Prologue

Jack Frost shouted out his joy to the heavens as he let the wind carry him across the forest, bringing winter snow and frost to the trees. He spun and flipped himself over and over and over. Smiling at the sharp crystals of cold poking inside his lungs. He flipped his staff with practiced precision and aimed and arc of sparkling frost at the highest tree he flew over, laughing again as he headed toward the Kingdom in the distance. The children would love a snow day, as children always did.  
As he flew higher, though, he noticed something he was almost sure wasn't here last year. He stopped to land on a branch, frost covering the branch where his bare feet touched it, crystallizing intricate patterns into the wood. He hopped off the branch and flew closer, stopping when he was as close as he could get. It was…a tower? He grunted his confusion and tilted his head, moon-dyed locks flopping to one side out of his eyes. Yes, there it was, a tower. In the middle of a cavern, in the middle of the dense wood, at least a day's walk from the nearest kingdom, and that was if you didn't get lost. Jack flew down and started to look over the tower, taking in it's oddly tall structure. There was one door at the bottom that was locked, but when he went up to the top of the tower, the presumed living space, he could see no one inside. He looked in all the windows, but despite the furniture in the home, no one was inside.

He huffed. Why should and empty tower interest him anyway? "And its not like anyone could see me, even if they were home." He said, feeling a pang in his chest. He turned away, ready to have the wind carry him away to bring winter to the rest of the Kingdom, when he caught sight of the little light in his peripheral vision, coming out of a concealed cavern. He turned back to look, and flew down a little lower, hiding behind the tower. As the light came closer, he saw it was a lantern, bobbing up and down in the last hour before night fully came. He folded his arms and narrowed his eyes. Why would someone chose to live way out in the woods like this? He waited as the view of an old, haggard woman came into view, she was clutching a bundle to her chest and trying to hurry as fast as her old legs could carry her. As she approached the tower, she looked up at it, and the last rays of light at the top of the cavern cast a dim light on its peak. She brought the lantern closer to her face and scowled at the tall structure. Her face bathed in the lantern light, making her look even more terrifying. Then, all of a sudden, the bundle at her arms squirmed and howled. Jack raised and eyebrow. Now, things were interesting. The old woman glanced at the little bundle in her arms and looked at it with pure disgust. Jack narrowed his eyes again, clearly, the woman was not happy with the child she carried.

The woman made her way to the bottom of the tower and to the door, trying to rock the child as she went. She clearly had no experience as a mother, and Jack found himself feeling sorry for the poor child. She set down the lantern at the foot of the door and pulled a single, solitary key from her robes. She placed the key in the lock and turned, the old lock clicking as its gears yielded. The baby began to howl more fervently. "Oh shut it." The old woman grumbled, scooping up her lantern and heading inside and slamming the door behind her. Jack heard the click of the door being locked again. He stared at the door, contemplating what to do.

He grumbled again. "Well Jack what would you do? She can't see you, and you are not in any position to take the thing." He said to himself, then laughed. Had it really been so long since he had talked to anyone that he was resorting to talking to himself? He really was losing it. So, as much as he pitted the little child and the strange haggard old woman, there was nothing he could do about it. So he flew to the top of the cavern and set his sights on the Kingdom across the forest and lake, laughing as he ran across the lake, his bare toes freezing it solid.

***I have posted the first chapter along with this Prologue, just to get a start. I will try to be as regular with this as possible, but let me know what you think as I go. Reviews and Favorites are appreciated! This is my first time publishing my writing, so please help me spread the ideas in my head around. Thank you!***


	2. Chapter 1

***Alright here's the first chapter, with more to come. I do have a set storyline in mind, so chapters in the future should start to get much longer than this. Especially as things start to get more intense. (dun dun duhhhhhh) Its just a start. Reviews are appreciated. Thank You!* **

Chapter One

Jack did not stop by the stranger tower the next year, or the year after that, or the year after that. In fact, he lost track of how many had passed. In truth he had forgotten the thing existed for a while. He was Jack Frost after all! He had too many snow days and too much fun to bring to the children to be so concerned about a strange tower he saw years ago. But one year, six years later to be exact, he happened upon the tower again. And this time, something was different. It was daytime for one, and as he flew over the small canyon he noticed that the door at the bottom was gone. He knitted his brows and flew down closer for a look. He reached out a hand to finger the vines covering the door just like the rest of the tower, intricate frost patterns trailing after his fingers. Then he noticed something strange. The vines were cut above the door, and when he stepped back to look, he noticed small, minute cuts in the vines around the door. He smiled. Someone still lived here. Curious to see how the old hag was getting along with her little bundle of joy, he flew up. As he flew, his eyes widened as the shutters on his side of the tower flew open. He backed away until he was no more than five feet from the open window.

And came face to face with the most emerald-green eyes he had ever seen.

The little girl was about six or seven years old, barely tall enough to reach the ledge of the window, and even now she must surely be standing on a stool to reach. Her little round face lit up at the sight of the sky before her. And Jack couldn't stop the rising hope in his chest, thinking she saw him, but her eyes continued to stare right through him. He flew a bit closer, to the right of the window. The little girl put her elbows up on the ledge and leaned forward a bit, she gasped and giggled at the height below her. Jack smiled. This little thing was, well, cute to say the lest. She turned her head, and Jack noticed her golden blond hair was well past her shoulders, as he had initially thought, but now, he couldn't see the end of it. "Hu." he said to himself. "How long is your hair Blondie?" He asked. The little girl rested her chubby little cheeks on her hands and Jack sent a snowflake to land of the tip of her nose. She shrieked and giggled, whipping the wetness off her nose with her chubby little hands. Jack chuckled and flew around the window, bringing more snow to the little green-eyed girl. While he wouldn't have thought it possible, her green eyes got even bigger and she reached out her hands to catch the snowflakes he blew in the window.

"Rapunzel!"  
A loud voice broke the moment. The little girl immediately drew her hands to her chest and stepped down from her stool. She was shorter than the window ledge. Her gleeful little face became downcast. Jack frowned and came to the window. Resting his elbows on its ledge, expecting the old woman.  
It was not an old hag of a woman. Instead, a woman who looked not a day over thirty was approaching the window. Her deep red dress shined off of pale skin, dark obsidian curls reflected the winter sun coming through the window. As the approached Jack saw her eyes narrow at the little girl and she stopped, putting her hands on her hips. "Rapunzel what have i told you about the window?" The woman asked sternly.  
"Not-not to open it mommy." The little girl - Rapunzel - said.  
"That's right." She said, bending down to the child's level, but still looming above her. Rapunzel twisted her toe into the rug.  
"I- I'm sorry, i just wanted to see the snow. It, its pretty." Rapunzel squeaked. The woman put a hand under Rapunzel's chin and lifted it.  
"Why do we keep the window's shut Rapunzel?" She asked. Rapunzel sighed, she must have done this before.  
"To keep bad things out."  
"Yes and why do we need to keep bad things out?"  
"To keep me safe."  
"That's right pet, to keep you safe." She said, patting Rapunzle's head.  
"Well there's no need to mock her." Jack huffed, sticking his tongue out at the woman, a childish gesture, but one he felt she deserved. The woman looked at her hand then, rubbing the skin and frowned.  
"Rapunzel," She said, smiling very big all of a sudden. "would you sing for me dear? We can forget all about the window." Rapunzel''s face lightened up again. "Yes mother." She said, picking up the stool behind her and running to the fireplace. It was then that Jack saw the length of her hair. It was at least five feet, if not more, behind her!.  
"Whoa!" Jack said, eyes widening. "Are you giving her a haircut soon? Seriously that's gotta be heavy!" He said to himself.  
The woman followed her and sat in a large high-backed chair, holding a brush. Rapunzel sat at her feet on her stool. Jack moved more into the window, sitting cross-legged on the ledge. "I should really get going…" He muttered. Then laughed. Where else did he have to be?  
The woman picked up Rapunzel's long hair and set the length of it over her knees, holding the part closest to Rapunzle's head in her hand and began to brush. Jack almost thought the scene was touching, a mother brushing her daughter's hair, until Rapunzel started to sing. Her childish voice filling the tower.

_Flower gleam and glow,_  
_let your power shine._  
_Make the clock reverse,_  
_bring back what once was mine._

_Heal what has been hurt,_  
_change the Fates' design._  
_Save what has been lost,_  
_bring back what once was mine,_  
_What once was mine._

Jack's eyes widened as he took in Rapunzel's hair. Her glowing hair. Her hair shone like the sun, a soft golden light filling the room. Rapunzle's mother closed her eyes and smiled. She inhaled deeply and breathed out a sigh of relief as the light faded. When she got up, Jacks eyes widened even more. She hadn't looked a day over thirty before, now though, she didn't look a day over twenty-five. Jack's mouth hung open and he almost choked. _Who in the world _is_ this girl!?_ He wondered. His eyebrows narrowed. He was so distracted he didn't notice the woman approaching the windows until he was nose to nose with her as she reached out with open arms to close the shutters. Jack jumped off the window ledge and flipped back into the air just as the woman latched the shutters tight.  
"Close." Jack muttered, still stunned. He flew back up to the window and saw the woman ushering Rapunzel to her room, a smile on her face. She could almost believe that this woman cared about the tinny chubby girl she held by the hand, until she shut Rapunzel in her room and breathed a sigh of relief. She immediately went to her mirror and looked over her appearance. Jack scowled. He was certain this was indeed the old hag with the baby he saw years ago, so clearly using the little girl for her strange magic glowing hair.  
Frowning, Jack flew up to the little girls bedroom window and looked in. The little girl sat in the midst of many small toys, playing with each one. Jack smiled and tapped his finger on her window, making a noise. She turned and ran to the window and put her chubby little hand on it, watching gleefully as frost decorated it with intricate patterns. "Goodbye Rapunzel." Jack muttered before flying away. "I'll be back." He said.

And he was.

Every year after that, Jack stayed in Rapunzel's forest a bit longer than necessary, using the winds to carry his frosty presence ahead of him so is physical presence wasn't needed anymore. Every year he lived for seeing that little face light up with the snow he brought with him. And even though she couldn't see him, he came, every year. Just to see her bright green eyes stare right through him. He knew it was a bit ridiculous. He didn't know why he felt so drawn to this particular little girl. He had met so many other children, so many other little girls. But none like Rapunzel. Maybe he felt sorry for her. So far as he knew, she had never been out of that tower. And her longing glances out the window and looking down at the ground told him he was right. Maybe it was her glowing hair that intrigued him to no end, but there was more than that. It was the way she took up painting, guitar, sewing, cooking and so many other hobbies to occupy her time. It was how she moved on to painting the walls when she was twelve because her mother couldn't bring back paper fast enough. It was the way her hair grew longer and longer and longer each year, at lest ten feet every time he visited. It grew so long that when she was fifteen, her mother no longer needed the door at the bottom of the tower, she just thew Rapunzel's hair out the window. And it was just…her. Her way of being so kind, so gentle, despite being raised by a mother who was so sarcastic, so rude and horribly insulting at times. Rapunzel still kept that little spark he knew she had ever since she was a child.

And Jack knew, that despite all the other little girls and boys in the entire world, he had found a favorite. And even though he knew that the Guardian of Fun probably wasn't supposed to pick favorites… He allowed himself this once, to do so.

***Tada! First chapter done! Sorry its so short, but they will get longer. Please, please, _please _review me and follow the story! I promise it gets more interesting. Thank you!***


	3. Chapter 2

**Hello! Thank you to all of you who read this! It really does mean a lot for you guys to review my writings. :) So thanks to all... four of you? Five? Anyway just thanks! Let me know how I did on this one. Thanks! **

* * *

Chapter 2

And then, at sixteen, she is a woman. Jack noticed her before, but now, now it was different. Now he noticed the way she moved, the way she brushed her golden hair out of her eyes, the way she preformed small acrobatics in the air to paint the high ceilings above every room in the house. He started to resent her mother's comments even more now. He was watching Rapunzel through her bedroom window that afternoon, painting frost on the windows while she painted flowers on her wall. She was strung up above her bed, using her forty-foot long hair to rig herself up above the door, using the rafters. He smiled as he saw one strand of hair, tied to her ankle, thrown around a rafter and held in her hand. Her other hand held a paintbrush, detailing a flower above her door frame. Each time she need paint, she released more of the hair in her hand, lowering herself to her nightstand, placed in front of her door, with multiple jars of paint set atop it. Her brows knit in concentration as she pulled herself back up.

"Rapunzel!"

Rapunzel's eyes widened as her mother's piercing voice broke her focus. Her mouth opened and her hand released her hair and she yelped as she fell straight down. Jack quickly flew into her room and grabbed her waist, pulling her upwards and setting her back on her hardwood floor before she could hit the night stand face first. He immediately flew upward. _What have I done?!_ He asked himself. He looked back down at Rapunzel. She was clearly confused, looking around at everything. Jack felt his heart rate jump. What if she suspected? What would she think? Would she start to see him?

He had to admit, he was a little thrilled by the idea. The thought that her, she, Rapunzel, would actually start to see him… Well. The idea was absurd and thrilling at the same time. And as he hovered at the top of her bedroom, he couldn't help but be a bit…thrilled at the idea.

Fortunately, there was no more time for Rapunzel to consider how she had avoided face planting into her night stand. Her mother pushed open the door with such force, the nightstand was toppled over, Rapunzel scrambled and just managed to pick up her box of paint jars just before it hit the ground. Paint sloshed out of the jars anyway. Rapunzel's mother stood in the doorway, hands on her hips. "Now look what you've done child!" She hollered immediately. Rapunzel lowered her eyes.

"I - I'm sorry Mother Gothel." she mumbled. Jack realized that this was the first time he heard Rapunzel say her mothers name. "I- I was painting above my door."

"Well clean up this mess you've made now." Gothel said bitterly. "The paint will stain if you leave it there. Clean. Now, princess." She said, practically hissing the last word and slamming the door behind her. Rapunzel sighed and looked down at the mess.

"I'm sorry." Jack muttered. He hovered to where she knelt, scrubbing paint off the floor.

He knelt across from Rapunzel and touched one of the wet blobs of paint with his index finger. It immediately froze over, intricate patterns dancing on the surface of the bright red paint. Rapunzel gasped and bent down to touch the blob. It pried away easily from the floor and she picked it up, studying the pattern. Jack smiled. "And that is nothing." He said. Rapunzel, of course, didn't respond, just kept turning the blob over in her hands, frowning as the pattern faded as her hands warmed it. Jack stood up and walked toward the window and stood on the ledge. He touched her window with a finger and made another pattern on it, drawing her eyes to the window. He smiled, savoring her green eyes once more as he flew out the window muttering, "I'll be back tomorrow."

**************

Jack was, indeed, back the next day, with winter in full swing. Snow blanketed the ground, frost coated every window around the edges. Gothel left the tower more and more, bringing back firewood to keep the fireplace going in Rapunzel's room, her room, the sitting area and the living room constantly. They had obviously stocked up during the summer, but it was a chore to keep it fully stocked all the time. Gothel would often leave and make several trips up and down the tower about twice a week, her and Rapunzel devoting an entire day to the task. Rapunzel's cheeks would turn red and she breathed heavily during these days. One day, Gothel seemed to notice her daughters strained face. She carried the wood to the growing pile and looked at her daughter. "Oh come now, its good exercise pet." She said, walking towards Rapunzel. "You tend to get chubby in the winter dear." She said, patting Rapunzel's cheek. Jack balked.

"What!?" He bellowed. "You're kidding right lady?" He said. Gothel, of course, paid him no mind. She just burst out laughing, like it was the best joke she had heard in her entire life.

"Oh do stop being so serious Rapunzel! I'm only teasing." Rapunzel just did a little half-smile and nodded. "Now throw you're hair out the window again would you darling?"  
*************

Jack spent all his time around the tower now, floating above the roof, sitting on various rafters, and occasionally he would go into the kingdom to have some fun with the children. Even if they didn't know it. But mostly, he just stayed around Rapunzel's tower. He rarely ever left.

One evening, Rapunzel sat by the fire with her mother, reading a book. Gothel was sticking up a tear in her dress.  
"Mother?" Rapunzel asked, looking up.

"Hmm?" Gothel replied, not looking up at her daughter.

"Where does snow come from?" Rapunzel asked, looking up at the window at the howling snowstorm Jack had made.

"Well I could tell you." Jack said, jumping down from one of the rafters. "That would be me and me and nothing but me." He said, flipping his cane around in his hands and flipping up to sit on its curved end, looking at her.

"I have absolutely no idea Rapunzel." Gothel said, intending to dismiss the conversation entirely.

"But, it has to come from somewhere right? I mean it doesn't just pop up out of no where I mean…" She trailed off, mumbling the last words in a way that made Jack watch the way her lips moved more than ever. Gothel looked up.

"Rapunzel we talked about the mumbling. Stop the mumbling, speak with words dear." Gothel said. And despite the 'dear' at the end, the sentence had a bitter edge to it.  
Rapunzel looked at her. "Where does it come from then?" She asked again. Gothel picked up her stitching again with an exasperated sigh.

"When I was young they used to tell us Jack Frost made winter come to different places around the world. But that's a child's story dear he's not real." She said.

"Hey!" Jack said. "I can make this entire room freeze over before you even have time to blink!" He said, hopping down to his feet and pointing his staff at her. She didn't notice.

"Jack Frost…." Rapunzel said, glancing at the window again. Jack felt his breath hitch. His name… She had said his name. He smiled. "Sounds pretty good coming from you." He muttered, flying up to rest in the rafters. Rapunzel paid him no mind.

"Do, do you think he's real? That would be amazing!" Rapunzel said, eyes lighting up as her mother's expression turned sour. "Like, he could make it snow fifty feet tall! And maybe he could make icicles, and-"

"Rapunzel!" Her mother said, looking at her daughter with disapproving eyes. "It is very hard to count my stitches with you hollering like that! Now please, be quiet!" Rapunzel curled inward again, seemingly wanting to melt into the chair.

"Sorry mother Gothel." She squeaked. Gothel looked up from her stitching again.

"In fact, isn't it time you were in bed dear? It's getting late. And we both need to rise early, I have to get us supplies tomorrow." Gothel said.

"From town?" Rapunzel asked, her voice fading a little bit on the word town, aching with longing. Jack's heart squeezed.

"Yes, from town. Now, off to bed."

"Yes mother." Rapunzel said. She rose from her chair and went to hug Gothel, who kissed the top of her head.

"I love you." Gothel said.

"I love you more."

"I love you most." Gothel finished. She turned back to her stitching and didn't pay Rapunzel a second glance as she walked around the chair to her room up the small flight of stairs. Jack flew down and out the window and watched her go, resting his arms on the ledge.

"I'll be back tomorrow." He said, and flew off into the night.

***************

The next day, Gothel had already left, and something was different. Rapunzel was talking to herself. An odd habit she picked up, no doubt from being on her own for sometimes days at a time. Jack thought it was odd too, but he loved it. Watching her talk, hearing what was in her head. He thought it let him know more about her. But this time. Rapunzel was talking about him. And looking out the window a lot more than usual.  
"Jack Frost…" She said, as he sat, one leg dangling off the rafters. "I wonder…."

"What if I'm real?" He said, talking back, even though he knew she could not hear, not yet. "Of course I am! I bring all the cold." Rapunzel picked up some of the snow from the windowsill.

"I do wish he was real." She said. "I wonder what he would look like. Would he be an old, wise man with a beard? Or a child?"

"Woah, hey now you're getting into North's territory here. I don't have a beard, or a pot belly." He said. "There is one thing I'm wondering here Rapunzel," He said, looking down at her, "if you are starting to believe in me…why, why can't you see me?" He asked in a whisper. He usually didn't let himself hope, he had resigned himself to the fact that he would always be invisible, always in the wrong place at the wrong time. But if Rapunzel was starting to believe in him, despite her mother's words, why couldn't she see him? Much less hear him? "Maybe…maybe you just don't believe enough." He said, flitting a snowflake in-between his fingers.

Then he heard Rapunzel gasp. He looked down to find her staring… at him? His heart leapt. Could he be wrong? Was she looking at him? He looked behind him: nothing. Then he sent the snowflake in his fingers down to her and her eyes followed it until it landed on her nose and melted. He sighed. She was not looking at him. "Could you be real?" She whispered, whipping the water off her nose and looking at it.

He sighed. "Maybe Blondie, maybe." He flew out the window with such force he knew she was feeling the cold now. He let the winds carry him, fill his lungs with new air. He opened his eyes and looked out at the rest of the forest and screamed. He screamed out all his frustration, his longing, his loneliness, and all his hurt. "It's not fair! Its not fair!" He hollered, aware he sounded very, very childish. But he couldn't help it. He was tired of this. He was tired of the hurt, the throbbing in his chest. "I'm so sick of it…" He said. He looked up where he knew the moon would sit in the sky in a few hours. "Why did you bring me here!? Hu? Why did you do it, what use am I!?" He yelled. "I have no purpose, everyone forgets! No one believes…" He said. "This isn't fair! How am I supposed to not go insane!? I have no one to talk to, no one to respond to. I have-" He stopped and sank into the trees, coming to rest on a branch. He put his head in his hands. "no one." He whispered, "I - I have no one."

Jack stayed in his tree all night. He didn't try and head back to Rapunzel's tower until it was very late. He'd never been there at night before, but he had to make himself feel better. He wasn't himself when he was like this. If Pitch ever found him…well, he didn't think about that. He alighted himself on Rapunzles' window ledge and found, surprisingly, she was still awake. Burning a candle to its bottom reading a book. He sighed as he watched her, green eyes scanning the page with remarkable speed. He touched his fingertips to the window, covering the entire thing with frosty designs. He could no longer see her, and he knew he should really leave. The wind ruffled his hair as he backed away.

"Jack Frost?"

He stopped dead, he almost lost his power of the winds for a moment. Was that….

He turned around slowly. And there she was, standing at her open frost-covered window. Looking at him with her sparkling emerald eyes. And some how, he couldn't quite convince himself she was looking at him. "What did you say?" He asked her quietly. She blinked at him and opened her mouth, then closed it. He flew forward fast, blowing cold wind into her room, ruffling her hair. He was practically nose to nose with her. "What. Did. You. Say." He asked again, barely whispering the words to her. She cocked her head.  
"Are you, Jack Frost?" She asked, her eyes looking his face all over. Jack smiled out of the corner of his mouth.

"You, you can see me?" He asked, putting a hand of his chest and backing away from her a bit. "You actually know I'm here?" She knit her brows, then nodded at him slowly. Jack gasped and smiled, the most genuine smile he had smiled in as long as he could remember. "Oh yes! Finally!" He said, flipping up side down in the air. "Yes yes yes!" He shouted at the sky. "Thank you!" He said, spinning around in the winds over and over again, more snow came out of the sky, and she shot arcs of it from his staff. He felt electric, elated, happier than he had ever felt in his life. Someone finally saw him! Someone could finally see! And who should it be but Rapunzel? Rapunzel, the kind, good-hearted beautiful Rapunzel he knew. He laughed and looked at Rapunzel from his vantage point in the sky, still standing at her window, looking at him with wonder and smiling at him. "You have no idea what you've done for me." He said, feeling like he was tingling with electricity. He swooped down to her so fast she didn't even get a chance to blink before he grabbed her face in his hands softly and pressed his lips to hers. He heard her give a 'Mhfff!' of surprise, but he couldn't stop himself. Slowly, Rapunzel tilted her head to him, and kissed him back, moving her lips with his. And for once in his life since becoming the winter spirit, Jack felt himself getting…warm. He felt the heat of her mouth and radiating off her body into his hands. He felt the way her lips moved against his, and felt himself breath cold air into her lungs. She gasped and put one hand in his hair, drawing him closer. He moved forward and kissed her again, and it felt just as good as the first time.

Jack pulled away, realizing what he was doing. He immediately put his hand over his mouth.  
"Oh! Oh I'm, I'm so, so sorry about that I, um….." He was so flustered. How could he do that? Why had he done it? It hadn't been in his mind to kiss her before, he would have never thought to do it before. So now… He looked at Rapunzel, she was breathing fast, and looked a little bit dazed. "I am so sorry. So sorry I don't know what came over me I just…" He stopped. Was she… laughing? He flew a bit closer and saw that yes, in fact, she was. "You, you're not angry?" Jack ventured. She stopped laughing and looked at him.

"Of course not! How many girls can say that their first kiss was with the spirit of winter?" She said, putting her hands on her hips. "So what did I do for you?"

"Excuse me?" Jack asked, completely thrown off by the change in subject.

"You said I had no idea what I had done for you. So what'd i do?"

"Oh, that." He said, flying closer to the window. "Well, you can see me." He said. She cocked her head to one side and looked puzzled.

"Cant everyone?"

Jack looked down and then back up at her. She must have seen the hurt in his eyes. "No, they can't." He said. "No one can."

"No one?" She whispered. He shook his head.

"Not that I've seen." He smirked, laughing at his own joke. Rapunzel frowned and turned back into her room. Jack followed and sat on her windowsill, leaning his back on one side, spinning his staff with his right hand inside her room.

"So how can I see you?" She asked, pulling up her desk chair and sitting on it backwards, facing him. She rested her arms on the back of the chair and put her chin on her hands, looking at him.

"Because you believe." He said simply. "People can only see me if they believe in me. It's the way it works. Usually, only little kids believe I exist. Adults usually outgrow me." He said, frowning. Rapunzel's eyes gleamed with sympathy.

"Oh." She said. "How does it start?"

"When you start believing." He said, looking at her. "When your mother mentioned me, the fact that I bring winter, you started to believe, but it took awhile of staring at frost and snow before you let yourself truly believe what you were considering. It took time."

Rapunzel looked at him and smirked. "Well I definitely believe in you now." She said. Jack blushed. "How old are you anyway?"

"I'm not entirely sure." Jack said. "I've kind of lost track of my age… seventeen? Eighteen maybe?" Rapunzel smiled.

"I'm seventeen, we're the same age!" She said.

"I know." Jack said before he could stop himself.

"You what.?" He sighed.

"Ialreadyknowyou'reseventeen." He said hurriedly, looking down.

"How?"

"I've known you since you were small." He said, looking at her. He was sure if he could blush as deeply as he could when he was human, his entire face would be red. It was embarrassing to admit that he had watched her grow up without her knowledge.

"How?" She asked again.

"Well, I've brought winter here for what seems like eons now…" He started. When she seemed like she was looking for more, he went on. "One year when I came back something was different in the forest, your tower was here, and it was odd." He said.

"So you were here when I was born?" She asked, shocked. Jack winced internally.

"Yes…"

"What was I like?" She asked. He looked at her, well as long as she wasn't mad…

"Excitable." He said. "You could never sit still, and you had so many questions all the time. You're mom was very annoyed with you at times." He said, smiling. Recalling the fine memories.

Rapunzel smiled. "Really? I was?"

"Yes." Jack said, going on. "And your ridiculously long hair glows and gives you both long lives." He said, folding his arms across his chest. Rapunzel's eyes widened. She jumped out of her chair and looked at him with fear in her eyes.

"How, how do you know that? What do you want with it?" She asked in a panicked, rushed voice.

Jack raised his hand, putting a bit of concern into his voice. "Easy Blondie why would I want your hair?" He asked. She looked at him, the panic subsiding, replaced with uncertainty.

"I, I don't know…" She said, playing nervously with a strand by her face.

"Look I already got the living forever thing down okay? I don't need it." He said, she looked at him with wide eyes.

"Really?"

"Yea." He said. She sat back down in the chair. "How long have you been able to do, ahh…." He gestured to her hair all over her bedroom floor.

"As long as I can remember." She said. "I was just born with it that way. My mother says that when I was a baby, some people in town saw what it could do, the whole living forever thing, and they tried to cut it." She said, reaching a hand up to pull back her long blond locks to reveal a short brown one just behind her ear. Jack flew in her room and took the brown strand in between his fingers and rubbed it. He let it drop and walked back to the window. He picked up his staff and sat against the wall.

"They all wanted a piece hu?" He asked, not looking at her.

Rapunzel nodded. "But once its been cut, it loses its power to heal, that's why it turns brown. Mother told me that my life was in danger, people wanted to take me. So she took me here and hid me." She said, looking out the window with a forlorn expression.

"You've never been outside…" Jack said, his voice trailing off.

"No…" Rapunzel said. "It's too dangerous. Mother says that what I have is a gift, it has to be protected. That way it can't be misused. And I can't be… taken advantage of." She said, pausing.

"Makes sense." Jack said. "I can't imagine this is the easiest stuff to have around though." He said, picking up the nearest blond strand. Rapunzel smirked.

"It's not so bad, it has its uses."

"Like painting?" He asked, eyes flashing with amusement.

Rapunzel's eyes widened. "That was you!" She said. Jack put a hand to his chest and gasped.

"The lady has no proof!" He said, mocking her. He eyes danced with laughter as she smiled.

"You kept me from falling! When mother scared me and I almost fell on my nightstand." She said, pointing a finger. He smiled.

"So what if I did? You know you should really try and not have things right below you, you never know what might happen. Next time maybe you will smash your face on something." He said, frowning at the idea.

"So it was you!" She said, smiling. He shrugged. "Thanks." She said, and he noticed her eyes were getting heavy.

"You had better get some sleep." He said, "You seem tired." He stood, she looked up.

"Will i see you tomorrow?" She said fast. Jack climbed on to the window ledge and looked back at her.

"Only if you want to." He said.

"Well ya!" She said, smiling and going to the window as he hovered out of it. She put her hands on ether side of the window. "See you tomorrow."

"Tomorrow." Jack said, and it seemed more like a promise than anything else.

***************

* * *

**And There it is! I hope you liked it, I tried to make this one longer. Also, coming up, there will be some of Rapunzel's POV as well, don't wanna leave her out of her own story. But let me know what you think! And as always, more to come! I have lots more planed for this plot... (hehehehe..)**


	4. Chapter 3

**Thank You to all who read and reviewed! I appreciated it so much! And thanks for the tips. :) Here is Chapter 3, sorry it took so long, hopefully the length and plot points make up for it a bit. As always, favorite and review please! And comment's are always appreciated. :) Thank You!**

* * *

Rapunzel laughed, spinning around her room. She fell laughing onto her bed, but she was too excited to sleep at all. _I have just kissed Jack Frost._ She thought. She laughed into her hand again. The whole thing seemed so… unreal. Jack Frost wasn't supposed to exist. He just wasn't. And yet… He so obviously did. He seemed so happy when she could see him. So happy he had kissed her. And the thought that people could outgrow you…what a horrible feeling! Rapunzel thought of living like that. Having a few friends, having them all leave. Just one day, waking up and having nothing. Maybe he didn't make friends anymore, maybe he just gave up on it all.

Then why her?

Rapunzel thought. _Why me?_ What had she ever done to make the Spirit of Winter pay more attention to her than the others? "I'm nothing special…" She said a loud. She rolled over on her stomach. "I get chubby in winter, I never wear shoes, I'm clumsy, I don't work hard enough…" She said, counting on her fingers. "I'm nothing special." She said, lowering her head into her crossed arms. She sighed. _I can't do this tonight_…She though. Tomorrow. Just think about tomorrow. She smiled again, thinking of her day tomorrow while mother was out, she would be making friends with the Spirit of Winter.

"Rapunzel!"

Rapunzel shot up from her bed, her head spinning from getting up to fast. She groaned and threw her legs over the side of the bed. Her feet made hollow sounds on the wooden floorboards as she approached her door. As she reached for the handle, the door swung open smacking her straight in the face. Rapunzel yelped and fell to the floor, clutching the space just above her right eye. She saw the swish of her mother's skirts as she walked in the door, turning to look at her on the floor. "Oh Rapunzel." He mother said with an exasperated sigh. "How can you be so clumsy? Watch where your going child!" Rapunzel moaned and clutched her head. It was already throbbing and hot.

"Sorry mother, I guess i didn't get to the door in time." She said. She looked up to see Gothel standing above her, hands on her hips.

"Well don't just sit there, get up!" She said. Rapunzel scrambled to her feet, apparently it wasn't fast enough. Gothel grabbed a hold of her upper arm and hauled her up to her feet. "We haven't got all day Rapunzel! If I don't leave now, I won't make it to town and back before nightfall!" She huffed. Rapunzel followed her out of the room, rubbing her eyes. She felt the heavy pull on her head as her hair filtered out the door, down the stairs and out on the living room floor. Gothel opened the window and stepped on the ledge. She beckoned with her hand as Rapunzel gathered up the hair closest to her head and offered it to her mother, who hung it over a hook. Rapunzel gathered up the rest of her hair and threw it out the window. She wrapped her hands firmly around the upper length of her hair, it was a lot of weight. If it just fell out the window and she didn't try to hang on to it, she could fly out of the living room.

Gothel grabbed a hold of Rapunzle's, hair and turned to look at her. Her smile beamed. "I'll see you in a bit my flower. Be good while I'm gone!" She said. Her sing-songish voice so different from the bitter one before. Gothel lowered herself out the window. "Love you!" She said as she neared the ground. Rapunzel felt the weight on her head lessen and she looked out the window, waving at her mother as she disappeared through the cave.

"So that's how she leaves hu?" Rapunzel whipped around and saw him, Jack, sitting up in one of the rafters, high above her. She folded her arms.

"Don't scare me like that!" She said, looking up at him. He didn't seem to hear her. His eyes went wide and he flew down to stand nose to nose with her. "What?"

"What happened to your head?" Jack said, his eyes filled with concern, his eyes searched her forehead.

"Oh, is it bad?" Rapunzel asked. She walked past Jack toward the mirror that stood in the living room. She leaned forward and touched her head, brushing her hair out of her eyes. Yup. There it was. A giant bruise forming on her forehead above her right eyebrow.

"How did that happen?" Jack asked, hovering closer.

"It was an accident." Rapunzel said, maybe a bit quicker than she should have. "Mother opened the door, I was behind it." She said.

"Here, turn this way." Jack said, she obeyed, and he opened his palm, revealing swirling snowflakes. He blew into his hand, sending the flakes her way. They settled over her bruise, goosebumps rose up on her arms as the cold settled in. "That will bring down the swelling."

"Thanks." She said, not sure what to say next.

"Have you ever left?" Jack asked her suddenly, twirling his staff in his fingers.

"Left where?"

"Here." She sighed.

"We already discussed this. No, I haven't." She said, the last word ending with a slightly bitter tone. He held up his hands.

"Sorry Punz." He said.

"Punz?" She asked. He shrugged.

"Rapunzel's a long name to say. I had to come up with something." He said. "Haven't you ever wanted to leave?"

Rapunzel sighed. "Sometimes. But I never actually go through with it."

"Why not?" She shrugged and looked at the ground.

"I don't know, I just don't. What if someone tried to hurt me? What if I got lost? Mother would never allow it anyway, and if I couldn't find my way back…" She trailed off, still not looking at him. A pause followed. "Alright, my turn." She said, putting her hands on her hips and looking at him.

"Turn for what?" He asked cautiously.

"Questions. You know about my deep dark secrets, now its your turn!" She said, smiling. He rolled his eyes.

"Oh I doubt I know _all_ of your deep dark secrets, Punz." He said.

"Avoiding my questions before I've even begun." She teased, pushing him in the shoulder. She walked to the other side of the living room and grabbed a hold of one of the strands of hair closest to her face. Using it, she flung it over one of the rafters and used it to haul herself up.

"You must have incredible arm strength to do that, how often are you up here?" Jack asked, coming to sit next to her. She was standing now, hauling the rest of her hair up with her so it wouldn't pull on her head while she sat.

"Whenever I feel like it." Was the response she gave. Once Rapunzel was satisfied with her hair, she sat and leaned up against one of the adjoining rafters. "So. Your turn." Jack sighed. Rapunzel grinned. She knew she had won.

"What do you want to know?" He muttered, this time, it was his turn to not look at her.

"Were you born Jack Frost?"

"What do you mean?"

"Like…Were you always the Winter Spirit I guess."

"Oh." He said. "That. Well, I don't really…remember."

She cocked her head to one side. "You don't remember?"

"Well, no." He said, resting one arm on a raised knee. "I remember it being dark, and cold. I was lifted out of a frozen lake, by the moon." He said, realizing how insane it must sound to a regular person.

"The moon." Rapunzel said flatly.

Jack rubbed the back of his neck and sighed. "Ya, the moon. Apparently, the moon can choose you for specific tasks, just like it chose each of the Guardians, it chose me as the Winter Spirit."

"Guardians." Rapunzel said, in the same flat tone as before. Obviously not understanding. Jack sighed.

"Ya, Guardians. You know, the Sandman, Toothfairy. They're all real. But not in the way you think, they are the Guardians of specific aspects of childhood…"

And off he went. It was a difficult concept for her to grasp, Rapunzel just sat in silence most of the time, asking the occasional question while Jack tried to explain it all. When he was done, she just sat there on the rafters. Jack's eyes flitted from one side of the tower to the other. "Well…say something!" He said. She shook her head.

"Oh, sorry its just a lot, you know? It's all very-um, well, big." She said, looking down at her hands.

"Big?"

"Ya big."

"Why big?" Rapunzel sighed and fell backwards off the rafter. Jack was about to fly and grab her when she snatched one of her hair strands and used it to swing herself to the middle of the room.

"Look." Rapunzel said, holding her arms out wide and gesturing to the room.

"Look at what?"

"This. Look at all of this. This is all I have, this is all I have ever known. I've never seen the other side of the world, I've never seen a lake or an ocean, heck I've never even seen the town!" She said, laying on the floor and putting her hands behind her head. "You're so lucky Jack Frost." She said. "You get to go anywhere." Jack sat on the rafter for a moment, looking at her.

"You could, you know." He said. She looked at him, and he hopped off the rafter and alighted down beside her. "See the world." She rolled her eyes. "I'm serious!" He said.

"Jack, I have no idea what people would do to me out there. If they tried to take my hair before, who's to say they won't try and take it now? I don't think it would be safe, and I can't exactly hide it you know." She said, turning to curl on her side. "I have to stay in here." She said quietly into the floorboards.

Jack looked at her, curled up in a sad ball on the floor in a heap of hair. He knelt next to her. "Well in here can't be so bad, and now you have me." Jack said. Rapunzel looked at him.

"What do you mean?"

Jack twirled his staff and sent arcs of snow into the air. "I mean that I happen to be an expert in fun, and I think I can help you with your problem."

*****************

And from that day forward, Jack visited Rapunzel every day. The day's flew by for the both of them, and things got better. Rapunzel hardly noticed her mothers stinging remarks, and Jack's loneliness subsided. The two had a balance. There was equal give and take. Rapunzel and Jack grew closer as the days went on, and Rapunzel found herself putting a new meaning to the very context of the word friend. The fact she finally had one was a start. Jack's aches and pains over his undiscovered existence became bearable. As long as he had one, just this one person believing in him, it was enough to keep the loneliness at bay. They became friends, just friends. Jack hadn't initiated anything other than that since their kiss so many months ago, and that, they supposed later, was why they liked it. There was no relationships involved, no tense moments. It was just them, Rapunzel and Jack. Two people who just needed one another, just needed a friend and someone in their life. They came to know a lot about each other, and became close confidants.

Until the day winter ended.

"Do you have to leave?" Rapunzel asked, sitting on her bed, the moonlight streaming through the window.

"You know I do, Punz." Jack said, leaning up against her wall, crossing his arms.

"But I thought you said you could send out the winds to bring winter?" Rapunzel said, trying to find a reason for him to stay. "What am I going to do all by myself?"

Jack twirled snowflakes between his fingers. "I can send the winds, but they only go so far, they can't reach far off places. And Punz, as much as you love winter, others don't. Summer has to come here, it can't be cold like this all the time. I've already stayed longer than I should have." Rapunzel looked at him, he hadn't told her this.

"You have?"

He nodded. "Just the fact I'm even here makes it colder, it's who I am, I can't help it. With me being here, spring and summer can't come, I'm too much of a barrier. And there are other places where I need to bring winter, other palaces where summer has stayed too long. It's out of balance." Rapunzel groaned and flopped on her back.

"But what am I gonna _do_?" She said, dragging out the last word. "Who will I talk to?" Jack laughed.

"Well you've hardly painted since I came, or read any books, or music, or anything. I'm sure you'll find something to do."

"And the talking?"

"Your own voice is pretty good company."

"What if I can't get anymore books?"

"Write your own story."

"What if I slip off the rafters and face plant into the floor?"

"Then I guess you'll have to be more of an acrobat."

"What it-" Rapunzel bit heir lip. Jack looked at her, he was sitting on his staff now, looking at her from the air. "What if I don't want to be alone?" She said quietly. Jacks face fell. Rapunzel knew it was a low blow, and regretted it as soon as it left her mouth. It wasn't fair to him, for her to guilt trip him like this. Rapunzel sat up and swung her legs over the side of the bed and came to stand by his staff, she looked up at him.

"I"m sorry Jack I shouldn't have said that. I know it's not your fault you have to leave." She said.

"Thanks Punz." Jack said, looking down at her with a small half-smile that still looked sad.

"I'm just worried if I fall in my paint I'll ruin my dress permanently." She said, giving him a small laugh. He smiled genuinely at her this time.

"Well you're out of luck then young lady because I'm not paying for more paint." He said, hopping off his staff and resting it on the window sill. "Well…bye Punz." He said. Rapunzel stepped toward the window and he welcomed her with open arms. She leaned into him and he hugged her tighter. Rapunzel inhaled deeply, letting his scent be burned into her mind, and filling her lungs with ice crystals. Jack put his hand on her head. "I'll see you soon okay? It won't be long, promise." He said. Rapunzel nodded and stepped away. Jack put his hands on her shoulders and gave her a half-smile. "See ya Punz."

And he was gone, and she was watching him fly out the window, away from the tower.

The very next day, Gothel said, "You know dear I think spring my finally be moving in." Rapunzel just nodded.

Somewhere far away, in a cave of the darkest kind, a monster waited. Pitch Black was a character Jack had neglected to mention to Rapunzel in his tale of the Guardians. Maybe he just didn't see the need to worry her, maybe he just decided that it was unnecessary. Either way, Pitch still existed, and he still thrived. The dark, stick figure of a man stood, watching his back sands from the scene that had taken place not moments before. He watched as Jack put a hand on Rapunzel's head, he watched as she stood at the windowsill, watching him leave for the summer. He had watched the pair for quite some time now, scowling as the friendship grew. "Oh." He sighed, with a voice that sounded like it whispered all your nightmares at once. When, in fact, it could. "Oh how sweet, Jack you've found a friend." He said. "Pity, the little lost princess can't leave with you. But now, we can't have that can we?" He paced his cave home, and tapped one of the small cages that hung from the ceiling like sick lanterns. A squeak emanated from the cage, and Pitch looked in to where one of Tooth's pathetic little fairies sat, curled up in a ball. "Wouldn't it be fun?" He asked, making the sands dance around the little thing, making it shiver with cold. "To mess with the story? Oh that would be glorious!" He said. The little fairies eyes went dark, and it gave him a quizzical expression. "You belong to me now." He said. The little thing smiled, its eyes black as Pitch himself, all the color drained from her tinny frame, replaced with black and white. When it smiled, rows of sharp, pointed teeth snapped, stringy hair sprouted from its head. "See little one? Cold and Dark, they just go together, don't you think?" The fairy tilted its head and smiled its menacing smile. "Someday, Jack won't be able to resist taking his prize out for show, you know. What will his little favorite do? Do you know? Do you?" He said, shouting the last line and shaking the cage violently, the little fairy smashed against the bars, when it rose up again, it's face was cut and starting to bleed, but all it did was give an empty laugh.  
Pitch laughed to. "Why, she'll find herself of course!" He shouted, spinning around and spreading his arms out wide in a grand theatrical gesture. "Rapunzel is the lost princess of that kingdom, don't you think, little fairy, that she will find out who she is? What will she do then?" He grabbed the cage again. "Who knows, but I have an idea of what she might do. And that, is something truly fearful."

Rapunzel was bored. Just as she knew she would be. Her mother had gone out, and she simply didn't have the inspiration to paint, or the focus to read a book, nor the motivation to write one. She tried to sleep more, but all that did was make her more agitated. Jack had been gone for months now, and she was running out of things to do. She could already feel the crispness in the air that signaled fall, and the trees were starting to turn color. But it wasn't fast enough.

"Why isn't it evening yet?!" She groaned to herself. Rapunzel hopped all around the house, dancing on her toes in the warm sun streaming through the window at the top of the tower. She was excited.

Tonight.

Tonight was the night.

The floating lights came back into the sky.

Every year, these little floating lights came into the sky, only once a year, and only on her birthday. Rapunzel wasn't even sure what they were, all she knew was that somehow, somehow, they were meant for her.

"Rapunzel! Let down your hair!" Came her mother's sing-song voice through the window. Rapunzel shot up and ran to the window.

"Coming!" She shouted, attaching her hair to the hook and tossing it out the window. She winced as Gothel took hold and she pulled her up. "Hello mother." Rapunzel said, taking deep breaths.

"Hello dear, how was your day?" Gothel said, turning to put the food she had bought into the kitchen.

"Oh, same as any other." Rapunzel said, following. "So mother, I just thought I'd ask, because you know, you're so smart and all and I really think that you would like it and-"

"Rapunzel, stop mumbling, you know how I feel about the mumbling."

"Yes mother. Anyway, I just wanted to ask, do you know what the floating lights are?" Gothel immediately stilled and went tense. Rapunzel winced. She gave a little laugh and went back to taking things out of her basket.

"What lights, dear?" She asked.

"Oh, I don't know," Rapunzel said, shrugging her shoulders, "the ones that appear every year on my birthday? Have you ever seen them?"

"Oh, you mean the stars, pet." She said, her voice making an attempt to sound normal. "That's all they are."

"See, mother, that's the thing. I've charted stars with the books you gave me, and these aren't like the others. They only appear once a year, on my birthday. Isn't that odd?" Rapunzel said.

"Well, I don't know sweetheart, lets just forget about it, alright?" Gothel said, her voice becoming more tense, trying to dismiss the subject.

"But, well, I was hoping mother, that maybe you would take me to see them? I decided that's what I want for my birthday."

"Rapunzel, I'm not taking you out and risking your life to see a bunch of strange stars, its ridiculous!" Gothel said, her tone becoming shrill at the end. Rapunzel should have picked up on the ques in her voice, but she was too excited.

"Mother, I really, really want this. I promise I'll behave! I can wear a cloak to cover my hair, and I won't make a sound I-"

"Enough Rapunzel!"

"But I-"

"I said no!"

"Mother I just-"

"NO!" Gothel's smack rang out across the small kitchen. Rapunzel clutched her face and looked at her mother with shock. In all her years of enduring Gothel's taunts, all the jabs, all the insults, Gothel had never laid a hand on her. Until now. Gothel was breathing hard and looking at Rapunzel with anger, then she seemed to come back to herself.

"Great." She said, sinking into a chair. "Look what you've made me do." Rapunzel just stood there, clutching her stinging right cheek, fighting back tears.

"I, I'm sorry mother." She said quietly. Gothel looked at her and rose from the chair and stepped toward her and put her hands on her shoulders.

"It's alright dear." She said. "Oh look at your face, pet." She said, taking Rapunzel's hand away. "I do love you very much, Rapunzel, all I want is to keep you safe."

"I know." Rapunzel said, nodding. She looked down at the floor. "I'm sorry mother."

"I love you very much."

"I love you more."

"I love you most." Gothel finished. "But Rapunzel." She said, her tone dropping.

Rapunzel looked up. "Yes, mother?"

"Don't ever ask to leave this tower, ever again."

"I, I promise." Rapunzel said with a heavy heart.

Gothel smiled. "Good. Now, wash up for dinner, I'm making Hazelnut soup for your birthday." She said, moving Rapunzel around the wall and toward her room across the living room.

"Yes, mother." She said quietly." And she went across the living room and up the stairs to her room, she stopped and smiled back at Gothel and closed the door. Once the door was closed, she sank to the floor and cried, tears stinging the raw flesh on her cheek.

Gothel went to her bedroom at the opposite side of the house and slammed the door after dinner. She huffed and stomped over to her dresser and sat down in front of the mirror and inspected her appearance. _What am I going to do with that child!?_ She thought. For years, she had kept Rapunzel her secret after stealing her from the palace. Her everlasting youth hung on the fact that Rapunzel needed to stay here. In the tower. Forever.  
"But how will you hold that influence, Gothel?" Came a dark voice. Gothel whipped out of her chair, knocking it to the ground.

"Who's there?!" She said. "I'm warning you, I'll give you something you won't soon forget!" She said, eyes whipping around the room.

"Oh but Gothel, you indeed have something I want, but I think you will like my offer as well." The voice said.

"Then show yourself! Coward!" Gothel said, curling her fists. Slowly, to of the corner of her room, a shadow emerged, at least two heads taller than her, and slowly formed into the body of a man. His skin was gray and everything else about him was jet-black. When Gothel looked into his eyes, she saw every nightmare she had ever had reflected there. She stood up straighter. This was no time to go weak.

"And who are you?"

"My name, is Pitch. Pitch Black." He said, his voice echoing in a strange way off the stone walls.

"And I'll ask again, who are you?" Gothel said, putting her hands on her hips. "Names mean nothing."

"On the contrary." Pitch said, flaring his hand for dramatics and pacing. "Names have great power. But, I can see mine does not have the same effect on you as it does others. I am the Nightmare King, you could say. The Essence of Fear, the blackest night." He flashed closer to Gothel so they were nose to nose. "I make people relive there _worst_ nightmares. I make people feel things they thought they had buried away long ago, I can make you feel so dark you will want nothing more than death itself." He said, eyes flashing. Gothel tried to look unfazed.

"Can you now." She stated.

"Yes, Lady Gothel. And I have some information for you."

"Really. I doubt its anything useful?"

"Oh I think it is. Concerning your daughter?" Pitch asked, cocking his head, enjoying the little flash of fear in Gothel's eyes. "Or should I really even call her that? No, no I don't think I should…" He said, backing away from her and gazing out the window, hands folded behind his back.

"How do you know about that?" Gothel said, her tone low and dangerous. "What do you want with her? If you even try to take her I-"

"Oh calm yourself." Pitch said, turning around and waving his hand. "Your seventeen year old daughters magic hair is of little interest to me. I am, intact, already immortal. I have no need of her."

"Then why bring her into this, maggot." Gothel said. Pitch shook his head.

"Temper temper Gothel, easy or I won't tell you why I'm here." He said, walking slowly around the room. "Are you familiar with Jack Frost, Gothel?"

Gothel huffed and crossed her arms. "A child's tail."

"What if I told you it wasn't?"

"I'd say you were the biggest liar I had ever met." Gothel said.

"Well, Gothel. I am the child's tail of the boogeyman, and here I am. You have a girl with magic, life-giving hair sleeping in the next room. Tell me you have a more open mind than that!" Pitch said mockingly. Gothel folded her arms.

"You have a point. Continue." She said curtly.

"Right, so Jack Frost. He brings winter, as we both know. What you don't know is that currently, no one believes he exists. He is just, as you say, a child's tale, to most people. Occasionally, there will be one who believes in him, but they are far between."

"Where are you going with this, Pitch?" Gothel asked, getting impatient.

"Well, my dear Lady Gothel, our Jack Frost has found someone who believes in him. Right here, right now, in this very house." Pitch lowered his voice and stepped nearer to Gothel with each word.

Gothel's eyes went wide and she gasped. "Rapunzel…" Pitch smiled and nodded.

"It would seem so."

"But, but how? How did he get in? How do you even know for sure!" Gothel said, her voice reaching higher.

"Well, the boy can fly, and my sands show me many things." He said, spinning some in his hand for effect.

"So what do you want then?" Gothel said, spitting out the words. "I can take care of it myself, I don't need you!" She said, stomping towards the door.

"For how long, Gothel?" Pitch said, his voice raising and dropping lower at her name. Gothel's hand was on the doorknob, she stood. "How long do you think you will be able to keep her here? As your little life-giving pet?" He said, hovering towards her and putting his face close to hers and whispering. "It can't last forever."

"Yes it can!" Gothel said, whipping around. Pitch stood up to his full height.

"You really believe that?" He asked. "You really think that now she actually has one friend, she won't be curious? That she won't ask more and more about the world, about getting out? Won't she get jealous, Gothel, that you get to go out into the world and she can't? If you can get down the tower with her hair, why shouldn't she try?" Gothel shook her head and walked away, becoming unceasingly agitated.

"No, no that won't happen. I won't let it. Those ideas will never even enter her tinny little brain. I'll make sure of it." Gothel said, pacing her room now. Pitch stood calmly, knowing her inner fears was perfect.

"But now, she has Jack. Jack Frost who flies across the world on the wind and snow! Jack Frost who can carry her across the stars!" Pitch said, flaring his arms. "Don't you think, Gothel, he has already asked why she had never considered leaving? What will she find, when she goes out into the world, monuments dedicated in her honor, as the lost princess, Gothel. She will find out her true parentage. Leaving you to wither and die. They have been friends since the beginning of last winter, but the thoughts are still there. She asked you to leave today!"

"And I put a stop to it!" Gothel shouted.

"For how long!" Pitch and Gothel were nose to nose. His last shouted words hung in the air. "Soon, a slap won't be able to fix everything, Gothel."

Gothel looked away. She sat down at her dresser. He was right, she knew he was right. "This boy." She said. "How do I get rid of this boy?"

Pitch smiled. "I will tell you."

"Why?" Gothel asked. "What's in it for you."

"Jack has…angered me for a long time now. He refuses to accept that cold and dark just go together, and I am determined to make him pay."

Gothel looked at Pitch, sizing him up. She couldn't defeat Jack without Pitch, she knew. She had never dealt with a Winter Spirit before. She had no idea how. _I will kill him if he crosses me._ She thought. _I will learn his ways and kill him if he crosses me in any way._ "Alright." She said. "Tell me, tell me about this Jack Frost who must die."

* * *

***Dun dun duuuuuu...**

**Whelp, there it is! Again, I apologize for taking so long, please review! More coming soon, I will try and be more prompt with it I promise. :) **


End file.
